


Wildflower

by Sea_Lavender



Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Angst, Character Development, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Like really slow burn oop, Slow Burn, tags will be updated as I actually write lol
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-15
Updated: 2020-08-26
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:54:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,941
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24731905
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sea_Lavender/pseuds/Sea_Lavender
Summary: Where Jihyun is intrigued by the girl in his high school class who's always drawing. As they get closer, she encourages him to try art, and at the same time, Jihyun is growing closer to his mother, who similarly encourages him to embrace his artistic side. The more time he spends doing art, with his mother, with that strange girl, the more he starts to see the world in a more beautiful light. He smiles more openly, he laughs more often, and things seem almost perfect -- but things have a way of falling apart.~~A High School AU where MC goes to school with Jihyun and Jumin~~(Will maybe eventually lead up to the events of the game)(like I've planned it but I'm kind of slow at writing T_T)
Relationships: Han Jumin/Main Character, V | Kim Jihyun & Main Character, V | Kim Jihyun & Reader, V | Kim Jihyun/Main Character, V | Kim Jihyun/Reader
Comments: 13
Kudos: 43





	1. Things you reconsider

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Painting Daffodils](https://archiveofourown.org/works/13733550) by [Chatdelalune](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chatdelalune/pseuds/Chatdelalune). 



⋗•⋖

She was drawing again. In the middle of a physics lecture, instead of taking notes on graph paper like most students were doing, she had a sketchbook out. Jihyun couldn’t help but stare in confusion. It was a well worn sketchbook, too, so he could only assume that she had the same habit in many of her other classes. Was she passing any of them? Wouldn’t their teacher have told her off for it by now? How-

His train of thought was abruptly broken by Jumin sharply nudging him in the ribs and then glancing at the board. Jihyun looked up, slightly panicked as he saw the physics teacher looking at him with an exasperated expression.

“Jihyun _._ For the third time _,_ can you come up and write out a solution to this problem?”

“Yes, sorry,” he mumbled as he got up from his seat and walked to the whiteboard. Even as he picked up a marker and started writing out an equation, his eyes shifted to the left to see that she had closed her sketchbook, a pencil sticking out of its pages as if to hold her place. A hand covered her mouth as her shoulders silently shook with laughter. She was… laughing at him? He looked back at the board, frustrated. As he came to the end of the equation he was writing, he realized he didn’t know where to go from there. He didn’t know how to finish solving the problem. It was her fault that he was distracted, anyway. It was her fault, and she was… still laughing at him.

“Mr. Raiko? I wrote out the initial equation to set up the problem, but I don’t know where to go from here.”

“Very well, go back to your seat. Miyu, could you finish it up for him?”

Jihyun paused at the mention of her name, watching as she pushed her sketchbook to the side and walked in his direction, taking the marker from him. 

As she twirled the marker around in her hand, he wondered if their teacher would start to get mad if she couldn't answer the problem. After all, neither of them had been paying attention, so he figured she probably wouldn’t know how to solve it either. Yet, as she started to write, there wasn’t even a flicker of hesitation in her eyes, and Mr. Raiko ended up congratulating her for getting everything correct down to the proper notation and units. She just smiled and went back to her seat, continuing to draw as the lesson continued.

He didn’t even realize he was staring at her again until Jumin practically waved a hand in front of his face trying to get his attention. 

“Jihyun. Jihyun.”

“Oh, sorry.” He finally turned to face his friend. “What are we doing?”

“Group problems. We’re supposed to work as partners.”

“Ah, okay.” As he scanned the worksheet, he could only gaze at it blankly. “Uh, Jumin? What does permittivity of free space mean?

“You really weren’t listening at all. Have you ever even talked to her?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Jihyun muttered, pointedly looking back at the paper.

“Yeah, sure you don’t. By the way, we technically don’t need to know what permittivity of free space actually means.”

“Then why is it on the problem set?”

“It’s just the name of a number in one of the equations.”

“I hate this class.”

“Jihyun, were you saying something?”

He practically jumped in his seat when he heard Mr. Raiko next to him. 

“No! Not at all.”

“How are the practice problems coming along, then?”

“Fine, we’re doing fine.”

“I hope so. Don’t forget there’s a quiz next class.” He finally walked back to his desk, focus shifting to the stack of their tests from two units ago that he still had yet to grade.

Despite himself, Jihyun glanced in Miyu’s direction one more time to see her already looking at him. As their eyes met, she flashed him a sympathetic smile while his eyes darted back to his desk.

“I really hate this class,” he mumbled, burying his face in his hands.

⋗•⋖

“You should talk to her.”

“What?” Jihyun looked at Jumin with a confused expression at the suggestion. It was their lunch period the next day, and the two of them sat together at a table in one of the courtyards.

“I’m just saying, she’ll probably notice you staring at some point. It'll seem less weird if you talk to her first.”

“I don’t stare at her.”

“Then why did you have no idea what was going on in physics yesterday?”

“I was just spacing out. Everyone does sometimes.”

“And you just happened to be staring in her direction every time you were spacing out.”

“I-- Okay, fine, maybe I was a little, but not because of what you’re thinking or anything. I just think she’s strange.”

“Strange? How so?”

“You know how she’s always drawing in class instead of taking notes, right?”

“I don’t make a habit of staring at her, so I actually wouldn’t know.”

“That’s not important,” Jihyun huffed. “It’s just… why would she be at this high school if she's only going to spend her time in class on something so pointless? This is supposed to be a highly ranked and prestigious school, so it's irritating to see someone wasting their time here like that. Also, don’t you think it’s weird how Mr. Raiko never says anything about it? Usually he calls out anyone who’s not paying attention, but he never says anything to her.”

“Maybe she does well on the assessments, so he doesn’t feel the need to?”

“I do well on the assessments, too.”

“If I recall correctly, didn’t you say your last test score was 7 points lower than your typical score average?”

“So I messed up on one unit. I still think it’s weird.”

“Well, I’ll say it again before we have to go back to class. I think you should consider talking to her. You haven’t been focused in class lately, and I think you might be less distracted if you did. She might not seem so strange if you get to know her. Who knows, maybe she’s really good at physics and already knows everything, so she doesn’t even need to listen. Maybe then she could help you so that you stop taking my flashcards the morning of every test.”

“I don't have any interest in talking to someone like that," Jihyun maintained, a scowl crossing his face. "Also, you offered to let me use your flashcards.”

“I know.” Jumin offered him a slight smile as he started to pack up his lunch and head to his next class. “I’ll see you later. Think about it.”

“Yeah, yeah. Later.” Jihyun waved and headed in the opposite direction to his own class.

⋗•⋖

“Take your seats and put away all materials. We’ll be starting the quiz shortly.”

“Good luck,” Jumin whispered to Jihyun as he pushed his books to the side.

Jihyun simply sighed in response. He had stayed up late studying the previous night, but at this point was struggling to stay awake, let alone remember how to do the problems he had worked through. 

Once the quizzes were passed out, Jihyun could only stare at the paper blankly upon reading the question. Even so, he wrote down whatever equations from the unit he could remember, trying to see if any of them were related. His expression relaxed a little as he saw a connection between what he was writing and what the question was asking, and started to work toward the solution. Just as he thought he was finished, though, he realized that there was one variable still left in his answer that he’d forgotten to solve for. A glance at the clock revealed he only had 30 seconds left anyways, so he just left his answer as it was and turned it in, hoping to get partial credit.

“How did you think it was?” He asked Jumin as he returned to his seat.

“I thought it was easy enough. You?”

“Fine, I guess.”

“I feel like in the future it might be better for you to just to go to sleep instead of studying so late.”

“Maybe.” Jihyun yawned, resting his head on the desk. 

“It’s the last class of the day, just try to stay awake until it ends.”

⋗•⋖

“As you come into class, look up at the board for the new seating arrangement. I know I usually let you pick your own seats, but I wanted to try something different this time.”

Jihyun and Jumin looked at each other and sighed. The idea of physics class without being able to sit next to each other was unpleasant, to say the least. They looked at the board to see where they were sitting, and while Jumin and Jihyun were on opposite sides of the room, Jihyun was right next to Miyu. 

_“Talk to her,”_ Jumin mouthed at his friend before sitting down at his new desk. Jihyun rolled his eyes as he glanced across the room where Miyu was already at her seat and walked over, taking his place next to her. 

The bell signaling the start of class rang, and their teacher cleared his throat. 

“First off, I’ll be handing back your quizzes from last class and going over the solutions to it. Come up to get yours when I call your name.”

When Miyu’s name was called, his eyes glazed over as he watched her walk to the front of the classroom and almost missed his own being called. He glimpsed at his score as he was sitting back down before shoving the paper into his folder. 

“Did you do okay?” 

He started at the sound of her voice, replying in a frigid tone. 

“I did fine, just not as well as I usually do. I knew how to do the problem but forgot to solve for one variable.”

“Ah, I can relate to that. I think this quiz went okay for me, but I had to study more than I usually do to prepare for it. I think this unit is supposedly where the content starts to get a lot harder,” she said, completely ignoring his cold demeanor, causing him to loosen up ever so slightly.

“Hmm, that would make sense. I haven’t been able to focus well lately, either,” he responded.

She stared at him for a moment, and he was starting to feel anxious when she spoke decisively.

“You need to get more sleep.”

“What?”

“You’re not sleeping enough. It might not solve your problem completely, but things would get a lot better if you were sleeping more hours.”

“How do you know?”

“Practically everyone in this school is like that,” she laughed, but the sound seemed hollow. “Also, you were falling asleep in class yesterday.”

“And you were drawing in class,” he muttered, getting annoyed again.

“Yeah, but you can listen to a lecture while drawing. Not as much while sleeping. Someone threw a pencil and it hit you, and you didn’t even flinch.” 

He didn’t know what else to say, so he shifted his attention back to their teacher, who had finished going over the quiz and was starting a lecture on a new topic. Jihyun took notes off the board without really processing any of it while Miyu was sketching as she always did beside him. Jihyun vaguely wondered what she might be drawing, but tried to keep his thoughts focused on his notes and away from her. 

⋗•⋖

“Do you always just draw in class?” Jihyun asked the next week when Miyu closed her sketchbook after a lecture had finished.

“Yeah, I suppose so. At this point I think it’s a habit. I don’t in all of my classes, but I do in most of them. It depends on the subject, I think.”

“Do you have a favorite subject?” He tried to tell himself he was continuing the conversation out of boredom rather than curiosity, but he was starting to realize he actually wanted to know the answer. _I'm sure it's just because I don't understand her._

“Not physics, that’s for sure.”

“I can agree to that,” he replied, unsure of whether having that in common with her made him feel more glad or irritated.

“Of the classes I’m taking right now, probably psychology," she decided after thinking for a moment. "It was actually that teacher who encouraged me to draw more in class, in a way. During the unit on information processing and memory, we read a study about how doodling while listening to something like a recording or a lecture can actually improve processing and retention of the information compared to just listening. I’ve always had a habit of drawing over all of my papers, but since then I’ve started bringing my sketchbook to classes where I have more trouble focusing.”

He was surprised to hear that she had a real reason for drawing in class, one supposedly supported by science at that. He still saw it as a waste of time, but it did make him more curious.

“Your favorite class isn’t art, then?”

“Oh, I don’t take art in school. It’s more of just something that I do for fun. I feel like it doesn’t really make sense to take art in high school if that’s not what I’m going to do as a career, since I could be taking other classes that help me prepare for university more.”

“So you don’t plan on being an artist or anything like that?”

“Nope, not me.” She smiled, but her eyes seemed empty as she kept talking. “I’m not nearly good enough to get into college for art. Besides, doing it as a career would be pretty unpredictable, and that’s something I’d rather not have to worry about.”

“Yeah, that's true. Artists have to sacrifice everything in order to devote themselves to the ideals they pursue through their work. To me, though, it doesn’t make sense to pursue those kinds of abstract ideals unless you’re already successful.”

“Well then, what is it that you want to do? What career do you want to pursue?”

“My father owns a business in arts and entertainment, so I’ll enter the company after university and eventually take over.”

“Ah, so you’re planning on going into business. Do you do any activities in school related to that?”

“Yeah. Right now I’m co-president of the investment club with Jumin.”

“Woah, really? I’ve heard that club is competitive. It's impressive that you're the head of it.”

“Are you in any clubs?”

“I’m the secretary of the art club. Not president or anything, but there are a lot of people that come.”

“So you don’t even take art, but you’re in a leadership position in art club?”

“Yep. Even if I’ll never be an artist, I do like it a lot. A lot of people there know it’s not something that they can pursue with everything they have, you know? I think a part of the reason why I got the position was because so many people there are like me. They might not have had space in their schedules to take the class itself, but they still like to do it.”

“So you don’t have to be that serious about art to go to the art club?”

“Not at all. It’s really more about creating something that has meaning for yourself than anything else. If you’re interested at all, you should come sometime.”

“I’m really not the type to do art.”

“Suit yourself. If you ever change your mind, though, it is really nice.”

“It just seems way too abstract for me to get my head around.”

“… What’s abstract about drawing some shapes on paper?”

“I meant more of what you said before, about creating something that has meaning. That ‘meaning’ is pretty baseless, the way I see it.”

“I get where you’re coming from, but I feel like abstractism is somewhat of an abstract concept itself.”

“What do you mean?”

“Take something like physics for an example. To me, it’s more abstract because if the average person reads the lab report that I’m writing right now, they probably couldn’t make heads or tails of it. Even if they could follow all the math, equations, symbols, and graphs that we had to use to calculate an approximation of the universal gravitational constant, why does it matter? What does it even represent? What’s the point of knowing it? Not many people would be able fully explain those questions. Art, though? That’s something that everyone can see. It’s real, it exists in a more concrete way, and anyone can create it.”

“That’s an interesting way of thinking about it," he admitted. "I guess what I mean by abstract is things in which value is subjective? If equations and calculations can make a plane fly, then even if they’re not widely understood, they have a value that can’t be argued. Art in that way is different in that one person could think it to be priceless and another not think anything of it at all.”

“Yeah, and you’re not wrong in that regard. In fact, that’s pretty much why I’d be afraid to follow a career in art. Anyways, I just finished the lab report so I’m going to go turn it in.”

“Wait, how did you finish it already?”

“Most of the second half was just solving equations, so I did it while talking. Also, it’s due at the end of class tomorrow, so I wanted to get it out of the way.” 

“I’ve barely even started,” he sighed.

“If you really need help, I could go over it with you during lunch tomorrow or something.”

“Really?”

“Just do something for me in exchange, though.”

“What?”

“Go to sleep before 10:00pm tonight.”

“Why? That’s so early.”

“Exactly. You literally look dead inside. You probably need it.”

“...”

“Okay, but for real.” She paused, her voice becoming more gentle. “Take care of yourself, it’s important. Meet me in the library during lunch?” 

“Sure, that works. Thanks.”

“Don’t thank me, thank my psychology teacher. Ever since we read this one study on some of the effects of sleep deprivation, I’ve been bullying everyone I know into getting more sleep.”

Jihyun smiled despite himself. It was… almost cute, the way she talked as if she was doing a disservice to others when she was really just caring about them.

⋗•⋖

After class, Jihyun was walking with Jumin as usual when Jumin turned down a different hallway.

“Where are you going?”

“The library. I don’t really feel like going home yet.”

“Is there a reason why?” Jihyun asked, following him.

“I can’t study there. My father and stepmother have been arguing so much lately that it’s too noisy.”

“Sorry, that sounds stressful. I know how much you hate loud noises.”

“I guess so. It’s fine if I stay here instead, though,” Jumin said as he stepped inside.

“Do you think they’re really going to get divorced?”

“They have been talking about it a lot, if you can even call it talking. I wouldn’t mind if they did. I just wish my father wouldn’t marry again.”

“Wouldn’t he be unhappy alone?”

“I don’t know, maybe that’s the problem. He keeps getting blinded by women that are so easy to see through, and he doesn’t seem to care. It bothers me. I feel like I don’t have any interest in women because of my father. They’re just so irritating.”

“You don’t even have any interest in getting a girlfriend, do you?”

“Just because you’re thinking about it doesn’t mean everyone is.” Jumin rolled his eyes.

“I’m not thinking about that,” Jihyun responded, equally exasperated.

“Then why bring it up?”

“I don’t know, what you said made me think that you sound older than you really are, in a way. Most guys our age would think about something like dating a lot, but your thoughts are basically the exact opposite.”

“You often say things like that too, though. Things that sound like they’d come from someone much older.”

“I guess we’re both like that then, huh?”

“Still, maybe not all women are so bad. Whenever I see your mother in church, she seems different from the ones I always see my father with.

“What do you mean? You’ve never talked to her, have you?” Jihyun’s brows furrowed as he looked at Jumin.

“No, but I get the feeling that she’s not a bad person. When she looks at you, she has this sincerity in her eyes that’s different from anything I’ve seen before. It’s caring, but almost in a haunting way, like sorrow tinged with desperation, as if she’s pleading to you.”

“It’s probably just because she used to be an artist,” Jihyun huffed. “I’ve never even looked at her eyes, so it’s not like I would know.”

“Still… She is your mother.”

“And?”

“I’ve had this thought for a while now, but I don’t think you ever question your father.”

“Why should I? I’ve learned a lot by following him, so I don’t see why I should question him.”

“Even so, you are your own person. At some point you have to find your own path.”

“So what are you saying I should do?”

“It might be good for you to at least talk to your mother. You might not get along with her, but I think it’s important that you form those opinions for yourself rather than just going along with what your father says.”

“Forming those opinions for myself? I’ll think about it.”

“Besides, we’re teenagers. We’re supposed to be reexamining our identities and finding our own places in society by experimenting with different aspects of our lives. If you’re unable to form an internal sense of self, you’ll get stuck in role confusion and become unable to accept yourself or others.”

“ … Where do you even pick this stuff up?”

“It’s from a psychology book. Stage five of Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development is about the conflict between identity and role confusion, which is the stage we would be in right now according to our age. It’s interesting to think about.”

“Miyu said her favorite subject was psychology, too. I wonder if she’s read about that.”

“She probably has, if she’s read about development. I think it’s a pretty well known theory within the field. What I’m saying, though, is that I think it’s time you try to stop seeing things through your father’s eyes and start seeing them through your own. Not even just about you mother, you should look at the world as a whole through your own point of view.”

“I should… shape my own point of view about the world?”

“I think it might be good for you to at least try. Anyways, that’s all I had to say. The rest is up to you.”

“Thanks for the advice. Good luck studying, I think I’m going to go home. I’m… trying to go to sleep early tonight.”

“Alright, see you tomorrow.”

“Yeah, see you.”

⋗•⋖

Jihyun had made sure to start his homework quickly upon coming home and ended up finishing earlier than normal. By 9:00pm, he didn’t have anything left to do for school the next day except for physics, which he had decided not to touch until lunch tomorrow. He ended up lying down in bed and closing his eyes by 9:30.

 _I guess I actually did it,_ he vaguely thought before he quickly lost consciousness, sleep deprivation taking over.

⋗•⋖

The next morning, Jihyun ran up to Jumin as they started walking to school together.

“Jumin!”

“You seem excited. Did something happen?”

“I actually slept for 10 hours last night. I can’t remember the last time I felt this awake on a morning before school.”

“I’m glad. You looked like you needed it.”

“What about you? Were you able to get all your work done at the library?”

“Yes, it was actually quite nice. I think I’ll keep staying there to read and do schoolwork in the future.”

“Maybe I’ll start staying there when midterms come around to study more effectively.”

“Oh, I also did notice that Miyu was there, yesterday.”

“Really? Did you say anything to her?”

“No. We don’t really know each other. I only noticed because she stayed so late. She was one of the only people still there when I left.”

“Oh, I see. And Jumin?”

“Yeah?”

“I still have to finish the physics lab during lunch, so I’ll be in the library then. 

⋗•⋖

Miyu was waiting for him when he walked into the library at the beginning of their lunch period, and she waved him over to a table. 

“You have your lab notebook with you, right?” She asked as they sat down.

He nodded, and the period flew by as she explained each part of the lab, walking him through the function of each of the data tables and helping him write the analysis until he only had the conclusion left to write by the end of lunch. As they were getting up to leave for their next classes, Miyu paused and Jihyun looked back at her.

“Hey… Thank you. For keeping your end of the deal. You look a lot more, well, alive than you have been recently.”

“Oh, I mean, I was only able to because I wasn’t losing sleep over this assignment. So, thank you?”

She smiled at him as they left the library, and Jihyun was vaguely aware of a light feeling settling over him. 

⋗•⋖

Jihyun and Jumin were walking home together in silence when Jihyun suddenly spoke.

“I’ve been thinking about what you said.”

“Oh?”

“About… forming my own opinions and all. I don’t know if it’s too sudden, but think I might go visit my mother.”

“I think that might be a good idea,” Jumin replied, smiling ever so slightly.

“Don’t tell anyone, though. My father would get really mad if he found out.”

“Of course. I hope things go well with your mother.”

“Yeah, me too,” Jihyun laughed nervously, staring at the ground and staying silent for the rest of the walk home.

⋗•⋖

The two of them didn’t talk about the subject any further until Jumin brought it up again a week later when they were eating lunch outside.

“Did you end up seeing your mother over the weekend?”

“Yeah, I did, actually.”

“How did it go?”

“It was kind of nice. We went to an exhibition together.”

“You go to those types of things a lot because of your father’s gallery, right?”

“Yeah, that’s true. It somehow felt different with her, though. The paintings there felt more real, if that makes any sense? It felt like each of them told a story, in a way.”

“Did you like it? Being able to see them like that?”

“I guess so? I’m honestly not really sure. I felt kind of conflicted about the whole thing, especially because Mother also kept saying I should try drawing.”

“Have you ever thought about drawing before?”

“I mean, it looks fun, but you know I don’t want to be an artist or anything like that.”

“If you think it looks fun, then maybe it's worth trying out. Just because you don't want to be an artist doesn't mean you can't draw as a hobby.”

“I guess you’re right. I don’t really know where to start, though.”

“I’m sure you’ll find a way.”

⋗•⋖

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my first time ever writing fanfic/posting anything online so I'm not really expecting anyone to read it but big thank you to anyone who read this far!!  
> I have a lot planned! Will I actually write it? Who knows! Technically I should have time to write since it's summer but because I'm insane I guess I signed up to like teach 4 classes a week while I'm also in a language program for 5 hours a day and also trying help set up another tutoring organization but guess who was writing this instead of putting together curriculum 8))  
> But for real though thank you so much to anyone reading this :D


	2. Things that come together

⋗✰⋖

Jihyun sighed, rubbing his eyes after their teacher had passed back another quiz.

“Was it really that bad?” Miyu asked from beside him.

“I keep saying that I’ll do better next time, but it keeps not happening.”

“Yeah, I get that. I didn’t do well either, if it makes you feel any better.”

“Aren’t you really good at physics, though?”

“Hard no to that one.”

“The other week, though, you explained the lab really well. It seemed like you understood everything.”

“I mean, maybe? I get conceptual stuff like what we needed to explain in the lab, but I’m kind of slow at calculations, so I didn’t finish it on time.”

“I mean, if you understand the concepts, then you’ll probably do better on the tests since we get more time on those. How do you study for physics, anyways?”

“Oh, well, my method is a little weird.”

“What is it, though?”

“This might not make any sense, but I draw during all the lectures, right?”

“Yeah, I’ve noticed.”

“I actually process the information in lectures a lot better when I’m drawing compared to if I just take notes normally. I feel like if I try taking notes on the actual content, I just get focused on trying to copy everything down instead of listening and understanding it while it’s happening.”

“I guess that makes sense, but why draw instead of paying attention to the board?”

“Well, I start a new sketch for every lecture and write the date and name of the topic at the top or in a margin. Every now and then, I flip through my sketchbook and if I can’t remember the content for the lecture that goes with the drawing, I know I need to study it more in depth. For some reason, seeing those sketches kind of brings it back into my mind, almost like how you get really vivid flashbacks when you listen to music from when you were a kid.”

“And that works?”

“It’s worked for me so far, at least. How do you usually study?”

“I just take notes, but I have a tendency to space out every now and then, so my notes are sometimes missing information.”

“Yikes, that sounds like it could be problematic.”

“It wasn’t so bad at the beginning of the year, but I think it’s gotten worse with time. Jumin likes to make flashcards, though. He says they’re more efficient, and I borrow them to study a lot.”

“You and Jumin seem like really good friends.”

“Yeah, we’ve known each other since we were kids.” Jihyun's expression softened slightly as he spoke.

“Do you two live near each other?”

“Yeah, right next door, actually.”

“That sounds amazing. My only neighbors are this old man that likes to shoot cans in his yard at night and an old lady that owns at least 10 cats and also feeds the strays.”

“God, don’t tell Jumin that.”

“What, is he afraid of guns or something?”

“No, the cats.”

“Jumin’s afraid of cats?”

“No, no, I meant the opposite. Jumin likes cats. A lot. He really likes cats. Like, not a normal amount.”

“Ohhh, so he’s a cat person! I love cats, too. I volunteer at an animal shelter on weekends, mostly just because I like to see them. I’m actually allergic to cats, but my love for them transcends my fear of death.”

“I… Death? Are you that allergic? That doesn’t sound safe-”

“I’m kidding, I’m kidding. I am pretty allergic, but it’s nothing that allergy medicine and a bit of persevering through coughing fits can’t fix.”

“That still sounds kind of concerning?”

“Trust me, it’s worth it. Have you ever seen a cat? They’re so cute, I would die for them without a second thought.”

“Remind me not to introduce you to Jumin.”

“Do you think he would talk to me if I started a conversation about cats?”

“What? Probably, why?”

“I feel like a lot of people try to be friends with him or even confess feelings to him, but he always walks off without a word.”

“I guess he can be like that sometimes. I don’t know, he’s just pretty closed off. He’s caring in his own way toward people who are important to him.”

“Aw, that’s really sweet. Even Jumin Han is soft for his friends. And cats. Oh, to have a friend that you could talk to about cats."

“I mean, if you want, you could just eat lunch with us sometime?” He had no idea why, but he had voiced the suggestion before really even realizing what he was saying.

“Really? I- I mean, yes, that would be nice. Thank you.” She beamed, and Jihyun quickly looked away. 

“Anyways, hurry up and at least pretend that we’re working on these problems before our teacher notices we haven’t even started them yet.”

⋗✰⋖

“Hey, Jumin?” Jihyun asked as they were walking out of their last class of the day. 

“Yeah?”

“I might have asked Miyu to eat lunch with us sometime. Would you be okay with that?”

“Of course,” Jumin replied with a slight smile. “What brought it up?”

“I don’t really know, I guess it just kind of happened.”

“I see. Also, I won’t be walking home since I’m going to the library again, so I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yeah, see you then.”

⋗✰⋖

Jumin had never stayed after school at the library this late before, but every time he thought about leaving, his mind filled with the sounds of arguments that were sure to welcome him upon arriving home. He had long finished his work, simply reading because he didn’t want to go home. By now every student had left except for Miyu, who was still working at a table near him. As he glanced across at her, he vaguely wondered if her situation might be similar to his. The sun had set two hours ago, and it looked like the librarian was about to leave, too. He assumed that they would have to go if the librarian was, but to his surprise, Miyu got up and talked to her near the door for a few minutes. The librarian then handed her something and left, leaving the two students alone in the library.

As she walked back to the tables, she sat down straight across from him rather than returning to where she had been before.

“I know the librarian really well, and I stay here late a lot.” She fiddled with what the librarian had given to her, which Jumin realized was a set of keys. “She usually only lets me stay like this when I’m the only one left here, but I told her you were a friend of mine. She seemed okay with it, so basically, you don’t have to leave until whenever you’re ready. It’s alright.”

“Why?” Jumin finally looked up from his book, giving her a puzzled look.

Miyu merely tilted her head, silently asking him to clarify what he was asking.

“You didn’t have to lie for me.”

“Oh,” she mumbled, staring down at the table. “You kind of… looked like you didn’t want to leave. That aside, though, I actually wanted to talk to you.”

Jumin didn’t say anything, but he put his book down on the table to indicate he was listening.

“Jihyun asked me earlier if I’d want to eat lunch with you two sometime, but I wanted to ask if that would be awkward for you? You two are such close friends, it feels like I’m intruding.”

“He already told me. I don’t mind.”

“If I’m honest, I’m a bit envious of you,” she sighed.

Jumin internally rolled his eyes. People were always saying that, whether because of his background, grades, appearance, or-

“I’ve never had a best friend.”

“ …that’s what you envy?”

She nodded, a melancholy smile tugging at her lips.

“You and Jihyun seem to know each other so well. You grew up together. You can understand and rely on each other. It just… It seems nice.”

“That might be true, but you don’t necessarily need to have grown up with someone in order to understand or rely on them.”

“I suppose so. How did you and Jihyun meet in the first place?”

“I crashed a car into his house.”

“You did what?” 

“It was a toy car, the kind that’s meant for kids to drive. I asked what he wanted in compensation, and he said he wanted me to be his friend. We couldn’t have been more than five years old, but we even wrote a contract.”

“Do you still have it, the contract?”

Jumin nodded, smiling faintly.

“Oh my gosh, that’s so cute. That reminds me, Jihyun said that you really like cats. Do you have one?”

“I still live with my father, and my stepmother doesn’t like them, so I don’t.”

“My parents don’t like animals either. Honestly, though, if I did have a cat, I’d feel bad for it.”

“What do you mean?”

“Oh, I don’t really know. I’m barely home anyway so I wouldn’t be able to take care of it well. I’ve always thought that I’d be able to have one when I’m older, but if I think about it, that probably won’t change. I’d always feel bad for not caring about the cat enough, since I would have to focus on work first.”

“Even if you have to work, though, you could still see it when you get home, right?”

“I have a habit of working late that I think would be hard to break. Besides, I visit an animal shelter on weekends when I have time, and I could probably keep doing that.”

“Do you do volunteer work there?”

“I only really go to see the cats because I like taking care of them, but I guess it is community service. Anyways, when are you planning on going home?”

“Soon, I think. I don’t really want to, but it is getting late. What about you?”

“I’ll probably stay another hour or so. I kind of want to wait until my parents are asleep.” She said the last sentence softly, almost as if speaking to herself.

“How are you planning on getting home, then?”

“Oh, I just walk home.”

“Isn’t it dangerous to walk by yourself this late, though?”

“I walk home at night pretty much every day, so I’m used to it. It’s nothing to worry about, honest.”

“Alright, if you say so. I’ll see you at lunch tomorrow, then?”

“Oh yeah, where should I meet you two?”

“We usually sit outside in the courtyard across the hallway from here.”

“Okay, thanks for telling me. I’ll see you then.” She smiled again as she went back to the table she’d been sitting at before. Jumin put away the book he’d been reading and stood up, about to leave, before looking back at her. He almost felt hesitant to leave her, alone in the school library as the clock ticked past 10:00pm. 

“Are you sure you’re okay?” 

“Yep,” she responded, not even looking up from the textbook she was taking notes from.

He still felt uneasy, but didn’t know what else to say, so he turned and left, quietly closing the library door behind him.

⋗✰⋖

“I saw Miyu in the library again yesterday,” Jumin mentioned to Jihyun as they walked to school the next day. “She talked to me a little.”  
“She did?” 

“Yeah, she’s eating lunch with us today.”

“Today?” Jihyun looked slightly panicked. 

“Anything wrong with it?”

“No, I just, I only even mentioned it yesterday.”

“She seemed excited. I don’t think you need to worry.”

“What did you guys talk about, anyway?”

“Not much. I think she mentioned that she looks after cats at an animal shelter on weekends.”

“ … You actually talked about cats?”

Jumin nodded.

“She seems like a nice person. People who care for cats usually are.”

Jihyun only rolled his eyes and made a comment about how absurd that statement was. 

⋗✰⋖

When Miyu stepped into the courtyard, Jumin and Jihyun were already there, sitting together. Jihyun waved at her, and she walked over and sat down across from them. 

“Did you get home okay yesterday?” Jumin was the first one to speak.

“Me? Yeah, like I said, I’m used to it.” Miyu replied.

“What do you mean?” Jihyun asked, puzzled.

“I walk home from school, which by itself is pretty normal, except sometimes I end up leaving a little late. I didn’t go home yesterday until after Jumin did, and it was already dark by then.”

“Isn’t that dangerous?”

“That’s what Jumin said too, but I live in a safe area, so it’s not really a problem. Anyways, what have you been up to recently?”

“I haven’t been doing much besides reading,” Jumin said, “but Jihyun just went to an exhibition this weekend.”

“You did? That’s so cool! I thought you weren’t interested in art, though?”

“I only went because my mother wanted me to go with her. Besides, I see those kinds of things a lot because of my father’s business. It’s not really a big deal.”

“I can’t believe that someone who wouldn’t consider coming to art club because they’re ‘not the type to do art’ sees exhibitions regularly.” Miyu pouted.

“You’re in art club?” Jumin questioned.

“Yep! I’m the secretary, and the other week Jihyun asked me about it. You don’t have to be experienced at all to join, so I said that he should come by if he was interested at all.”

“And he said no?”

“I don’t do art, okay?” Jihyun huffed.

“Didn't you tell me the other day that drawing looks fun, but you didn’t know where to start?”

“He said that?” Miyu asked, taken aback.

Jumin nodded, and they both momentarily stared at Jihyun, whose ears were starting to turn red.

“I guess I could try going if it doesn’t conflict with clubs I’m already in?”

“We meet twice a week during the club activities period, usually Wednesdays and Fridays. The next meeting is tomorrow.”

“He’s free tomorrow,” Jumin interjected before Jihyun could say anything, earning a silent glare from him. “I mean, you are,” Jumin continued. “Investment club is on Thursdays, and that’s the only other club you’re in.”

“Is that true?” Miyu looked toward Jihyun, who nodded in response.

“Do you want me to go?” Jihyun asked tentatively.

“I’d be happy if you did.” 

Miyu’s eyes seemed so bright and hopeful in that moment that Jihyun found himself agreeing against his better judgement.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've actually had this chapter written for over a week, but for some reason editing took forever this time T_T  
> I've also been thinking of changing the name of the fic to "Wildflower" but idk if there are people reading this that wouldn't recognize it if I changed the name ;-;  
> (The reason for "wildflower" is actually because now that I'm playing V's route again, I really liked how his mom compared embracing his artistic side to be like living as a wildflower, compared to the artificial flower he would have resembled if he had blindly followed in his father's footsteps, and I think it would fit the theme of the story really well uwu)  
> As always thank you so much for reading and feel free to comment if you have any thoughts or suggestions :)


	3. Things that you create

⋗▼⋖

Miyu had told him that the art club met in room A213. He had been standing in front of the door for almost a full five minutes now, but it didn’t look like she was there yet. He didn’t know anyone else there and felt uneasy at the thought of going inside.

“Jihyun?”

He practically jumped at the sound of his name, turning around to see Miyu standing behind him.

“Are you alright? You’ve been standing there for a while.”

“Yeah, I was just, I was waiting for you,” he said, stumbling over the words.

“Oh.” She smiled softly at him. “Come on, let’s go inside.”

Jihyun wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but as he stepped into the room, he was taken aback by how relaxed the atmosphere was. A few easels were set up in the back of the room, where three of four students were painting on canvases, and there were two people to the side doing printmaking. Most there, however, were painting on small squares. Jihyun gave Miyu a questioning look as if to ask what everyone was doing.

“Ohh! We’re doing that project today. Basically, everyone is painting on squares of canvas paper. Each person picks a color, and they can paint anything at all as long as it goes with the color that they picked. When everyone’s finished, we’re planning on putting all the squares together to make a sort of mural that transitions between the different colors. So, from far away, it’ll look something like a rainbow, but close up, you’ll be able to see what each person painted in their individual squares. I… ” Miyu trailed off, gaze shifting to the floor. “I hope you have fun. This place really feels like home to me.” She looked up again, flashing Jihyun a smile that hid any trace of wistfulness her previous statement had hinted at. “Anyways! What color do you want to use?”

“Do you have a favorite color?”

“Me? Probably something like indigo, somewhere between blue and purple.”

“I’ll do that, then.”

“A-alright, I’ll go get the paint!” Miyu quickly turned away from him, running to the other side of the room. She came back with her arms full of bottles that ranged in color from pale green to deep violet. 

“Here, let me carry some of them,” Jihyun said, taking some of the paints from her. Together, they walked over to a small, empty table in a corner of the classroom that was by the windows.

“What color are you thinking of?” He asked as they sat down across from each other.

“Mmm, I’ll probably use the really pale blues and greens, so mint? Like the color of your eyes.”

“ … my eyes?”

“Yeah, they’re a really pretty color.”

Jihyun looked away, staring at the table as he felt his face grow warm at the compliment. Taking one of the paintbrushes that Miyu had grabbed for them, he started filling the canvas paper with strokes of deep blue. There was still a voice inside him faintly nagging that he was making a mistake by even being in that part of the school, let alone painting like this. For now, though, he let it be drowned out by the satisfaction of filling the blank paper with color.

They didn’t say anything after that, absorbed in their art and simply enjoying the moment. Jihyun got up once or twice to get more paint, and Miyu would periodically refill the water they were using when it got particularly murky. 

They only looked up from painting when the sun was starting to set. Even then, they both watched the sky in silence for a long moment before Miyu spoke.

“Sunsets are so beautiful.”

“I never noticed how many different colors there are in them until now,” Jihyun admitted, still fixated on the view outside the window.

“It feels different, watching it with someone else.” Miyu turned away from the window, resting her head on her hands as she stared at Jihyun.

“It almost feels like we’re the only people here.”

“I mean, we are the only people left in the art room,” Miyu chuckled with a glance around the room.

“Really? When did everyone leave?”

“When school ended.”

“Ah, that would make sense.”

“A few people do stay after school, though. They’re mostly people who take art as a class and are working on projects or assignments. By sunset, though, everyone’s usually gone.”

“Are we even still allowed to be here?” Jihyun asked, a nervous expression crossing his face.

“Art club is student run, so the club leader who’s the last to leave is responsible for cleaning up, turning off the lights, and things like that. Since you’re still with me, it’s fine.”

“So you could technically stay as late as you wanted to?”

“I mean, technically, but I’d probably still get in trouble if someone found out I was staying here until two in the morning or something like that.”

“Have you ever done that?”

“Honestly, I do stay here late a lot. On days that I’m not studying in the library, I’m usually here after school. I do leave before midnight, though.”

“Isn’t that still really late?”

“Yeah, although sometimes the cleaning staff have seen me here at ten or eleven at night and since they didn’t say anything, I figured it was okay.”

“I see,” he mumbled as he dropped the paintbrush he’d been using into the cup of water between them. “What did you end up painting?”

Miyu turned hers around and pushed it in his direction so that he could see it.

“I just did plants, like succulents and mint colored flowers.”

Jihyun stared at it for a while, taking in the subtle differences in color between the different plants, the shading between different layers of petals. It looked so natural, with a few leaves in a darker shade of mint scattered in the background.

“It’s really cute.” He ended up smiling as he kept looking at it.

“Cute?”

“It’s really well done and I can tell by looking at it that you’re experienced, but something about the flowers seems cute to me.”

“Thanks,” she murmured. “What did you paint?”

“Um, I didn’t really know what I was doing. I just put different colors where I felt like they should go, but I was hoping for it to look like a night sky just after sunset, where there’s mostly blue and purple but still traces of pink in the sky. Actually,” he paused, looking out the window again. “Something like what the sky looks like right now.”

Miyu followed his gaze to the sky outside, then looked down at his painting. The resemblance was striking, especially given that they had been painting before the sun started to set and hadn’t used any references. 

“Jihyun?”

“I’ve never done something like this before, so it’s not good, but--”

“It’s beautiful.”

His eyes widened in surprise, clearly not expecting the praise.

“It… is?”

“Are you sure this is your first time painting?” Miyu squinted at him, feigning suspicion. “You haven’t been leading a double life as an artist in secret?”

He shook his head.

“I’ve never done art outside of whatever we did in primary school.”

“You’re really, really talented. I genuinely mean it. Looking at it, I would have guessed that you were either using a reference or had at least studied color theory and lighting effects, but you really just freehanded it.” She sighed, smiling. “I almost want to steal it from you so I can keep looking at it.”

“I won’t say anything if you do.” He smiled back at her a little, uncharacteristically timid.

“Really? We’re technically supposed to add them to the mural, but if you’re offering… ”

“Just let me steal yours, too. It can be a secret between us.”

“Promise?” Miyu asked, holding her hand out to him with her pinky finger extended.

He almost laughed at the gesture, but linked fingers with her anyway.

“Promise.” 

He found himself not quite wanting the moment to end. After a few seconds, though, she let go of his hand and they fell into a brief silence.

“Jihyun?”

“Yes?” His voice wavered, as if nervous about what she might say next.

“There’s paint in your hair.”

“What?” He tilted his head to the side, confused, as she stood up from the table.

“Come on, there are sinks over there, I’ll help you wash it out. Acrylic comes off super easily.”

“Oh… okay,” he mumbled, following her.

The sound of water coming from the faucet seemed unusually noticeable in the silence of the empty room. Jihyun didn’t say anything as she ran her hands under the water and then through his hair, trying not to hear his heart racing in his ears.

“Ah, I think you’re good now. Sorry about that.”

“It’s- It’s okay. Thanks.” Embarrassed, he stepped away from her, turning around to look back at the sky through the window. “It’s already dark outside”

“Do you need to be home soon?”

“I still have homework to do, so I probably should,” he replied with a sigh. 

“Is someone coming to pick you up?” she asked, walking up to him again so that they were standing side by side, both staring at the sky.

“I think my father had a meeting tonight, so I can’t really call him. I guess I’ll walk home,” he tried to sound impassive, but there was a hint of unease to his voice.

“I could walk home with you,” Miyu offered.

“You don’t have to-” Jihyun tried to protest, but she cut him off, shaking her head.

“I like walking at night, so I don’t mind. It feels so different from walking during the day, you know?”

“Yeah, for example, you might be attacked,” he scoffed.

“But you can only see the stars at night,” she countered. “And everything is so still and peaceful.”

“Until you get attacked.”

“If someone attacks us, I’ll fight valiantly to protect you!” She proclaimed, dramatically putting her right hand over her heart.

Jihyun succeeded in giving her a skeptical look for all of three seconds before dissolving into laughter.

“You’re impossible,” he said, shaking his head while smiling.

“So, you’ll let me go with you?”

He nodded, and she grinned. 

“Come on, let’s go pack up our things.”

⋗▼⋖

Later that night, Jihyun was lying on his bed, unable to fall asleep. He and Miyu had talked most of the way back to his house. Even when they did fall silent, it was a warm and comfortable silence. Nothing like the silence that currently surrounded him, that always seemed to envelope his house. Between him leaving for school in the early mornings and his father often working late at night, they rarely had cause to interact with each other at all.

He kept thinking about Miyu as he pulled the duvet closer to him. Despite it being somewhat late at night, he had felt a strange sense of security while walking with her. When she was next to him, he almost felt the beauty of the night, as if seeing it through her eyes. 

As his mind continued to wander, he thought back to earlier that day and the feeling of a paintbrush in his hand, filling empty space with color. It had felt so impossibly natural that he didn’t want to think about it. He didn’t want to think about how much he had enjoyed it, how calming it had been, and certainly not how much he wanted to do it again. 

His father would surely be livid if he found out that his son was painting, of all things. Although… his mother wouldn’t mind. With how much she had wanted him to try drawing, she would probably be delighted. She might even be proud of him for it. Without really thinking about it, he picked up his phone from where it was charging on the nightstand next to his bed and opened her contact information. He had never sent her a message like this before, but there had to be a first time for everything, right?

**Jihyun Kim:** Before, you said I should try drawing, right?

Actually, today I went to my school’s art club with a friend of mine.

We painted for a long time, until the sun started to set.

It was pretty fun. :)

His mother, who was warm toward him, even if she might have been illogical, a desolate artist. There was no cold silence surrounding her, and despite his better judgement, in the moment, he wanted to feel that warmth again.

**Jihyun Kim:** Do you want to meet again this weekend?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is Jihyun afraid of the dark?? 👀 Maybe  
> It's ok tho brave MC will protect the poor damsel  
> ANYWAYS y'all guess who was running a while ago and tripped and fell and scraped both hands so badly that she couldn't type for a week 🤪🤪🤪 You guessed it! It's me, the clown writer UmU  
> When will I update this in a timely fashion,,,, truly who knows  
> I've also been working on a mystic messenger art piece 😳 That I'm actually doing digitally instead of brainlessly sketching in my art book so of course I'm uploading this chapter now since I'm procrastinating on finishing the lineart for that lololol  
> For real tho Jihyun painting is just too cute  
> And as always thank you to everyone for reading!!! TwT  
> Y'all have no idea how soft I get when someone comments,,, or leaves kudos,,, my heart is just 💓💓💓 a;dflsdkfj not that many people are even reading this but the those of you who do rly are the reason I'm still writing this absolute clownery  
> If you have any suggestions or requests feel free to let me know uwu  
> 


	4. Things you hope for

⋗◍⋖

Sunlight filtered through pale curtains as Jihyun sat next to his mother on the soft white sofa in her room. They were mostly silent, Jihyun clutching a sketchbook and absentmindedly drawing in it while his mother looked on, smiling. Over the past few weeks, a sort of understanding had grown between them, and he could feel his mother’s warmth and happiness to see him drawing without her voicing it. Likewise, though Jihyun never said it, she saw how his brow would furrow in concentration when he was trying to fix a flaw in his sketches. She noticed how absorbed he became in it, and how a slight smile would cross his face whenever he was happy with what he had produced.

She had tried to encourage him as much as she could, giving him the sketchbook that was in his hands and sneaking art supplies into his desk when no one else was home. Sometimes she even stayed with him in his room and talked to him when his father was on business trips. Jihyun had never been one to become sentimental over such actions, but sometimes his eyes shone with gratitude in a way that filled her with joy. As she watched him draw, he put down the sketchbook with a small sigh of contentment, as if just finishing something. Curious, she was the first to speak.

“Jihyun… What did you draw?”

Her voice moved slowly, rasping slightly as she asked the question. When he first talked to her, Jihyun had found it to be somewhat irritating, especially when he had to try to remember to slow down while talking so that she could read his lips. He quickly became used to it, though. He became more patient, even starting to appreciate how much she tried to have conversations with him, given how hard it must be for her. He looked up from the drawing, turning so that he was sure she would be able to see what he was saying.

“My friend, Miyu, I mentioned her earlier, right? Since she's one of the people in charge of the club, sometimes she gives demonstrations about something related to art. She’ll walk through the process of drawing something specific so that everyone can follow along. Last week, she went over how to draw different types of flowers.”

He flipped back one or two pages in the sketchbook to find what he had drawn at the time.

“Here, I drew these daffodils that day.” He held out the book to his mother so that she could see. She smiled as she looked at it, her expression so warm that he started to feel slightly bashful, drawing the sketchbook back to his chest.

“Anyways, just now I was trying to draw violets. They’ve been a bit difficult, though. It’s almost like it’s harder to capture the image of a flower like a violet because they’re more simple and less distinct. Daffodils are easy to recognize just by their outline, but violets are mostly known for their color, so it was hard since I’m just pencil sketching.”

“Maybe… that ambiguity makes them more meaningful.”

“Do you mean that you can add more personal interpretation to something like a flower with less distinct features?”

She nodded, pausing for a moment before replying. 

“You can create… your own meaning for them.”

“Create your own meaning? Miyu said something like that to me a long time ago, before I even went to art club. Maybe she would like violets. But I should probably go back before father gets home. It was… This was nice, though,” he mumbled, unsure of how to express the feelings that art seemed to draw forth in him.

“There’s… another exhibition a few weeks from now. I thought you might like it. Would you want to go?”

“Sure. Yeah, that sounds like it would be nice,” he responded, standing from the couch and walking over to the window. The sun was significantly lower than when he had come, and clouds dotted the sky. He found himself vaguely wondering how someone would go about painting those clouds before uttering a goodbye to his mother and leaving through the side door that led outside.

His mother stayed in a part of their house that was only connected to the rest of it by one door, a door that was practically always locked. Besides, Jihyun’s father had never allowed him near it, so when he went to see his mother, he had grown accustomed to leaving the house through the front door, walking around outside, and reentering through the side door that led to his mother’s room. When he returned, he did the same thing. It was laughably easy to keep a secret from his father, given that he was seldom home and on the occasion that he was, largely kept to himself. Even if his father did notice him coming home, he would only see Jihyun entering through the front door. Jihyun could always just say that he had been at Jumin’s house or something like that. Not that his father would ever ask.

Sure enough, the house was empty save for staff as he stepped inside. Sketchbook clutched tightly in his hands, he went upstairs to his room where he took out a small set of watercolors his mother had given him and began to paint. Barely thinking about the details of the brushstrokes, he let his feelings take over for a brief moment. As the paper in front of him became stained with the deep sky of the early evening and a field of blurred flowers, it also became saturated with emotion. There was hesitation in it, but there was warmth, yearning and something he couldn’t put a name to. There was something exhilarating about it, in a way that made him completely lose track of time until before he knew it, the sky had become completely dark.

⋗◍⋖

  
  


Later that week, thoughts of art were momentarily pushed aside as Jihyun and Miyu realized they had a physics test in two days that neither of them had studied for.

“Since when did we even have a test this week?” Jihyun complained as they left the classroom.

“I knew it was on Friday, and I guess I knew that today is Wednesday? It just somehow never occurred to me that… that means it’s in two days.” Miyu frowned. “I guess I’ll be skipping art club to study.”

“Do you two even look at the calendar?” Jumin asked with a hint of exasperation in his voice.

“I write things down in my planner, but I kind of lost track of the days this week. If it’s fine with you two, we could all study after school?” Miyu suggested.

“That works.”

“Alright, let’s meet in the library then!”

⋗◍⋖

“Uhh, Miyu? What does this even mean?” Jihyun pointed to the bottom of the textbook page they were trying to solve problems from.

“Oh, so basically in the problem, it looks like there are two circular objects both hanging from the same string. It’s asking for the tension force at this part of the rope, which is just the force transmitted through the string that keeps them hanging in the air,” she explained after taking a moment to read the question. “The situation would look something like this.” She quickly sketched out the setup described in the textbook, labelling everything as she went. “Then you just have to plug in the values you were given into some equation to solve for the tension force. I think you would use this one?” She pointed at the expression she had just scrawled in her notebook underneath the setup diagram. “But then there’s still a variable left, and solving for that would take a while, so I think I’m doing something wrong.” She sighed, dropping the pencil she had been holding.

“Ohh, I think I get it now. It looks more straightforward seeing how you drew it out. Also, if you plug this other equation into the one you wrote out, doesn’t that make it really simple?”

“Wait, how did you even think of that? I think I can actually solve it now.”

“ …So, I got 40 Newtons for question 15.” Jumin spoke, and the two of them both looked down at how they had only just set up the problem.

“You… haven’t started solving it yet?” he asked, and they both shook their heads. He gave them a blank look before pulling out a short stack of index cards from one of his folders and pushed them toward Miyu. 

“Those are my flashcards for this unit. I’ve already memorized everything on them, and they might make studying easier when it comes to remembering certain equations.”

“Woahh, your handwriting is so neat,” Miyu said, gazing at the cards. “Sometimes I’ll try to look at Jihyun’s notes but I legitimately can’t read his handwriting.”

“It’s not _that_ bad-”

“Didn’t you get a lot of points off on a quiz once because the teacher couldn’t read your answer?”

“It was only one time!”

“A-anyways, are you sure it’s okay, Jumin?” Miyu asked, noticing that Jumin was staring at them.

“Like I said, I already memorized them. You can keep them for now, I don’t mind.”

“Thank you so much, that’s really nice of you!”

He nodded, and the three of them went back to studying from the textbook, with Miyu occasionally looking through the index cards to help.

⋗◍⋖

“How do you think you did?” Miyu asked during lunch after the exam, two days and an inordinate amount of cramming later.

“It was fine,” Jumin answered.

“Yeah, it actually went better than I was expecting,” Jihyun added. “I tried drawing out the problems the way that you did earlier and I think it helped a lot.”

“I’m glad it went well. I also somehow managed to finish all of the questions in time. We should do something fun to celebrate not failing the test despite forgetting about it until two days beforehand!”

“ … That was definitely only you two, but if you’re offering a chance to make either of you watch _The Hidden Garden,_ I’m not against it,” Jumin offered.

“What would you want to do, though? And no, Jumin, we’re not binge watching an entire soap opera.” 

“Wait, Jumin, you watch that show? I haven’t seen it but I’ve heard really good things about it.”

“Yes, it’s an excellent series, and has the perfect amount of tension in the plot. The relationships between the characters are also-”

“Can we maybe not watch another romantic drama?” Jihyun interrupted, rolling his eyes.

“Okay, maybe-” Miyu started, clearly trying to hold back laughter, “-we could go out and do something that would be fun for Jihyun, too, and then afterward instead of watching an entire show, we could just watch a movie?”

“There _is_ a cat cafe downtown,” Jumin suggested.

“Really? I’ve never been before, but that sounds so cute!”

“They allow customers to adopt their cats, so they also help the cats find homes.”

“So they’re for a good cause, too! I’ll definitely go at some point. Although,” she laughed, glancing at Jihyun who still looked utterly exasperated, “maybe this time we can just go to a normal cafe since I don’t think Jihyun has enough taste to fully appreciate the cats. I think there was one a few kilometers away from here that’s connected to a bookstore. That might be fun to go to.”

“Connected to a bookstore? That does sound interesting.” Jumin nodded.

“That’s fine with me,” Jihyun agreed.

“Alright then! I’ll look up the address later and text it to you two. Does tomorrow afternoon work?”

“Yeah, that’d be great.”

“It works for me as well.”

“Alright, see you then!”

⋗◍⋖

When Jihyun arrived the next day, he found Miyu and Jumin already there, looking at the social sciences section of the bookstore while waiting for him. 

“Have you seen anything interesting?” He asked as he walked toward where they were standing.

“Jihyun!” Miyu’s face broke into a smile as soon as she heard his voice. “It’s good to see you.”

“You… you too,” he replied. He realized it was the first time he’d ever seen her outside of school, and the thought made him oddly nervous. As Jumin started to explain the critique of pop psychology in one of the books they had looked at, though, he started to relax a little. He was there with his friends, and that was all that mattered in that moment.

They walked around for a while, talking and stopping to look at different books. When they walked by the romance section, Miyu would occasionally pick one up and open it to a random page and start reading aloud in dramatic voices, at which Jihyun’s sides started to hurt from trying to hold back laughter. 

“Jumin, do you read romance novels?” She asked as they neared the end of the section.

He shook his head in response.

“Not often. I find that those novels typically have overly predictable plot lines and not enough focus put on the development of the relationships compared to television serials. If I’m reading, I prefer books on more academic subjects.”

“Sounds like you’re not reading the good ones, then. Wait, where did Jihyun go?”

They turned around to see him standing in front of a table that had a mostly unfinished jigsaw puzzle set up on it. He was staring at it intently, and they watched as he matched a few of the pieces.

“Do you like doing puzzles?” Miyu asked after she and Jumin had walked over to the table and were standing next to him.

“He does,” Jumin answered for him. “Although, don’t you like the blank puzzles without anything on them more than these kinds?”

Jihyun nodded.

“With these, you’re just going off of a picture. The blank ones are more interesting because it’s purely thinking about how they fit together. You can’t match the pieces by color, or by looking at what the finished picture is supposed to look like. It’s up to you to see how the pieces match up. There’s no end image to limit how you think about it.”

“That’s… an interesting way to think about it,” Miyu mused, staring down at the puzzle as if deep in thought. 

The three of them ended up completing the entire puzzle, largely because Jihyun didn’t want to leave it unfinished, claiming that it would be “unsatisfying” if they did. The final picture appeared to be a scenic winter view, with a frozen lake and snow on tree branches. Something about the image was almost magical, like a memory that they had never lived.

“Aren’t you glad we finished it now?” Jihyun said with a half smile on his face.

““It is really pretty, it makes me almost wish I were living inside the scene. Winter’s my favorite season, too. Do either of you have a season you like most?”

“I kind of like autumn, the way things are right now,” Jihyun responded first. “It’s like… a fire that burns brightly before fading away.” They fell silent, and Miyu looked to Jumin, giving him a questioning glance.

“If I had to say, I also prefer winter,” he answered. “It’s peaceful, in a way.”

“Going on walks in the winter is really nice,” she added. “I feel like summer air makes you sleepy, but in the winter the air keeps you awake.”

Jumin didn’t say anything, but he nodded in agreement. 

“Sorry that the puzzle took so long to finish.” Jihyun grinned sheepishly. “Do you still want to get something from the cafe?”

⋗◍⋖

The three of them ended up all getting tea, drinking them while walking back to Jumin’s house. 

“This is so good!” Miyu gushed as she sipped at her iced matcha. Jihyun couldn’t help himself from smiling at the way her face lit up from something so simple. He was so caught up in how thrilled she seemed, he almost missed her offering it to him, saying “You should try some!”

“Oh, sure,” he mumbled in response, sipping at it before hurriedly handing it back to her, distracted by how close she was standing to him. He didn’t even have to look at Jumin to know that his friend was trying not to laugh at how flustered he had gotten.

When they got to Jumin’s house, he led them downstairs to a room with a large projector and shelves of DVDs.

“Do you really have an entire movie room?” Miyu asked, staring in wonder at the plush couches in front of the wall facing the projector.

“I suppose so. No one really uses it, though.”

“Except for when he’s watching soap operas. Or making me watch them with him,” Jihyun added, rolling his eyes.

“Ohh, what are we going to watch?” 

“Do you like fantasy or realistic ones more?” Jumin asked, walking over to one of the shelves and going through a few of the DVDs.

“Hmm, personally I think I like slice of life the most. Fantasy can be cool if it’s done well, but I feel like sometimes all the different elements can get confusing and it ends up taking away from the impact of the main story. It might sound weird, but realistic plots are more like a fantasy to me, since it’s similar enough to reality to be able to imagine what it would be like if those things really happened.”

“Ah, that’s a unique perspective. I typically like fantasy. Black magic, vampires, things like that, since they have the potential to add more tension to the plot. I do appreciate both, though.” Jumin then tossed the movie he had selected to Jihyun, who caught it and read the description on the label.

“This is just another high school romantic drama,” he sighed. 

“I see Jumin has excellent taste,” Miyu maintained, taking it from him to look at the cover herself.

For as much as he had seemed to be against it, Jihyun ended up just as engaged in the film as the other two. He was practically on the edge of his seat by the time it finished.

“I really liked the ending,” Miyu murmured from beside him. “The way they said they might have loved each other the entire time without even realizing it… that was really sweet.”

“Really?” Jihyun frowned. “I thought that it felt a little incomplete. They might have said that by the end, but where are they supposed to go from there? They still had to end up parting ways since Eunmi moved away.”

“I feel like they knew the entire time, though. That they loved each other,” Jumin added. “They just chose to keep it unspoken between them until the end. The ending felt like they were making sure of something they had always known before they lost the chance to know for sure.”

Miyu nodded in agreement.

“But then they never end up together?” Jihyun pointed out.

“I don’t think two people have to necessarily end up in a relationship for their love to have been meaningful. Besides, it happened when they were still young. Maybe they’ll meet again as adults. It’s an open ended way to leave things. I like that it’s kind of up to your own interpretation.”

“I guess so. I guess it just feels a little… empty to me, in a way.”

“I agree, but I actually think that feeling suits the movie well,” Jumin added.

“I don’t really think you can have love without emptiness, anyway,” Miyu said, leaning back against the couch. “A lot of films portray love as something that can cure someone from feeling empty, so it’s interesting how this one highlighted the extent to which the opposite is also true.”

“It’s not that late. We could watch another one that has a more concrete ending if you want,” Jumin said, look at Jihyun with an amused expression.

“I don’t exactly think I need another romance movie right now.” 

“Are you sure? That’s what you said about the last one, too, but it looked like you got really into it,” Miyu laughed.

With both her and Jumin staring at him expectantly, he eventually relented and Jumin picked out another film and set it to play.

It ended up being longer than Jumin had expected, and by the time the ending credits appeared, he was surprised to see how late it had gotten. Jihyun and especially Miyu, since she lived in a different neighborhood, supposedly both needed to go home at some point, yet neither of them had said anything as the hours ticked by. Jumin glanced to his right where they were sitting, about to ask them when they needed to leave, only to find both of them fast asleep.

A small smile crossed his face as he looked at them. They were leaning against each other, her head resting on his shoulder and his tilted toward her, their hands overlapping ever so slightly. Jumin quietly took out his phone, snapping a picture of the scene. 

⋗◍⋖

After they had gone home later that night, Jihyun opened his phone to see that Jumin had texted him shortly after he had left.

**Jumin** : Can’t believe you kissed her today ///

 **Jihyun** : I’m fairly certain I didn’t??

 **Jumin** : You took some of her drink when we were walking back

Same straw

Indirect kiss

 **Jihyun** : that doesn’t count at all ??

besides she was the one who said i should

I just said sure to be polite

 **Jumin** : Yeah

“Polite”

indirect kiss is still a kiss 

it’s in romance movies all the time

 **Jihyun** : my life isn’t a romance movie??

 **Jumin** : it could be though

<sends photo>

 **Jihyun** : I literally can’t tell what that is it’s so blurry and the lighting is terrible

 **Jumin** : it’s fine? Just turn up your brightness

It's not my fault you fell asleep together when the lights were off

 **Jihyun** : wait is that me and her?? 

**Jumin** : You’re even leaning against each other

It’s cute

Doesn’t it look exactly like that scene in the movie we saw earlier

 **Jihyun** : Wh

What when did that happen

 **Jumin** : When you were both asleep? 

**Jihyun** : I don’t remember that happening???

 **Jumin** : Well

If you weren’t conscious

You probably wouldn’t remember 

Lol

 **Jihyun** : … 

Okay I’m

Going to sleep

 **Jumin** : sleep well ^^

 **Jihyun** : that emoji looks evil

I’m leaving

Bye

He shut off his phone, the words Jumin had said replaying in his head as he sank onto his bed. Shaking his head as if that would get rid of his thoughts, he couldn’t help but remember the image Jumin had sent. With his friend’s less-than-optimal photo taking abilities, it really was hard to see anything in it. Even so, he found himself opening his phone to look at it again, only to immediately turn it back off, burying his face in his hands.

Unsure of what else to do, he ended up reaching for his sketchbook again. He didn’t quite know what to feel and certainly not what to do about it, but maybe drawing would clear his mind.

He could hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's 5:30am here woohoo will I literally ever post at a normal time the answer is like straight up no  
> I tried writing a longer chapter this time heheh so there's a little more ☆ content ☆  
> hhhkjhjkh sorry that it takes me like 1384 years to write :')  
> I swear some days I'll write 1.5k words in 20 mins and then the next day spend 3 hours writing two sentences  
> ALSO are yall excited for V's Birthday gosh I saw the new CG earlier today and I'm emotional T_T  
> As always tsym to everyone reading TwT


End file.
